


Casting Freedom

by Dymaxion Chronofile (ShouMarufuji)



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Monster World, Multi, RPG AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-05-13
Updated: 2012-07-01
Packaged: 2017-11-05 07:06:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/403724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShouMarufuji/pseuds/Dymaxion%20Chronofile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yami is in trouble, and Yugi has to help him. But, was it worth being trapped in an unfamiliar world, memoryless?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Phew! Okay, so this is a self-indulgent series, which I'll most likely update every Sunday. I'm saying self-indulgent, because a lot of it is more to do with my tastes. At some points, there will be shipping, or hints thereof. There will even be some crossover shipping! Characters will be listed as I go along, as well as ships. I'm sorry if you don't like ship, but I'm not here to cater to everyone's peculiar needs. Monster World has been edited to be more like Dungeons and Dragons, however, for the most part, they are all the same race. If I go OOC, give me a nudge. Also - I'll be using Japanese names for the benefit of inside the world, just to separate reality and game. God damn, this is more complex than I thought! I think that's about it. I hope you all enjoy!

Atem had always been the one for shadow games. He had challenged everyone he could, strengthening his power. He had loved the idea of minds collapsing and being sent to the realm everyone had dreaded. He loved the screams, and the shouts of agony, the pleas to stop. It was fine for him, though. It always had been. He wasn't the one having the shadows unleashed upon his mind. He enjoyed it.

Yugi, however, did not share his sentiment. He didn't fear the shadows, but only what lurked inside. He disagreed with the usage of shadow magic, and what they hid in their shade. He always thought someone he cared about could get hurt. It was just a feeling. But, he feared it was correct.

When Atem made the choice to challenge Bakura, Yugi had warned him. It was a terrible idea, someone could get hurt, what if he lost? He tried to assure him, it would be fine. Yugi wasn't so sure.

The pair had decided the game would take place in Bakura's home. The home was eerie, with artefacts and mythical items dotted around the somewhat dark home. It would be abandoned for the most part, other than his twin brother being upstairs. Yugi didn't know what the game would be, it wasn't his business. That's what Atem had said. But, even so, his mind was restless.

The game was in the living room. There must have been silence for five minutes. Yugi waited in the hallway, listening out for any sounds. There was nothing. Not a single groan or even instructions on the game. Just plain silence echoed throughout the silent home. Seconds ticked away at the clock behind him, the only source of sound Yugi had, and began to count each second. When he had counted around five minutes, the living room door swung open, revealing Bakura, and only him.

"Where is he?" Yugi asked. Bakura only had a smile of his face, a sinister grin, which deeply unsettled the smaller one.  
"I think you can guess. But, why don't you look for yourself?" he opened the door slightly. Yugi pushed it the rest of the way.

In the centre of the room sat a rather large table, with papers, pencils, figurines, maps and dice. One of the figurines, with rather spiky hair, was knocked over. On the floor by the table, lay Atem on his side. His eyes were closed, and he almost looked asleep and peaceful. But he wasn't, and Yugi knew. The moment he had registered what was going on, he rushed to the fallen male's body. He tried gently shaking him, despite knowing its futility.

"It's no use. You, of all people, should know the penalty of a shadow game," Bakura said from the doorframe. Yes, of course he knew. But, even so, he knew a way to reverse it. And, he would. He rose to his feet and turned back to the figure by the doorframe.  
"I want his soul back!" he shouted. "I challenge you to a shadow game!" the bright purple eyes shined with determination.  
"Are you sure? Then again, I wouldn't blame you. You wouldn't have to live without him. You could both spend an eternity together in the shadow realm," he mocked. Yugi's stance did not budge.  
"I mean it, Bakura. I'll do whatever it takes."  
"Alright," he sauntered over to the table. "Fine. But, we play by my rules."  
Yugi nodded. "Fine."

The game wasn't new to Yugi. He had played this game with Ryou beforehand. But, this game was with the other Bakura brother. He wasn't the same person. He was much more dangerous, Yugi noted. Despite the fact they were twins, Bakura never harboured the sympathy his brother carried, or any of his kindness. He was trouble, but Yugi was used to trouble after everything that had happened.

Bakura was the one to sit at the table first. He folded his arms on the table, casting a glance at Yugi, a silent coax to sit down. Nerves suddenly staring to weigh heavily on him, and gulped as he sat down. But, even still, he was determined to rescue his friend from the most dreaded place in existence. He looked down at his fallen friend, a final reminder of what he had to do. And, he swore, he would do whatever it takes.

"Monster World," Bakura started. "You've played it, haven't you? Not with me as dungeon master, you haven't. It'll be a little different to the games you've played with my brother. I’ve altered the game to my tastes, and it won’t be the same game you recognise. They're my rules, but, you'll figure them out eventually."  
"But the rules of the game have already been set. You can't suddenly change them," Yugi protested.  
"Too late. Though, I have to mention, you'll be discarding your monster tamer for this game. You will create a whole new character based on my conditions."  
"Then, what are the conditions?" he asked. He was desperate at this point. He needed to play this game, and fast, before the shadows completely engulfed Atem.  
"It’s quite simple. The character, Yugi, is you."

Before he had a chance to respond, his entire body stopped. His muscles, joints and organs felt like stone. He could not breathe, nor think clearly. His mind panicked, sending multiple messages to his body to just move. But it didn't respond. The entire process lasted a second, but it had felt like an eternity to him.

Yugi could feel himself lifting. He caught a glimpse of himself, knocked out on the table, before being taken in by the surprisingly careful hand of the shadows. His body felt like it was drifting down, a cloud slightly too heavy to fly. He closed his eyes as he felt parts of him seemingly disappeared, pieces of his heart leaving him.

His mind started to slip, the shadows eroding his memories. The thought of a Brooklyn blonde vanished, a brown-haired beauty disappeared. A male with forward-protruding hair's memory left him, as well as a brown-haired billionaire with his little brother. All the people seemed to leave him. Finally, the one memory he had to keep, the one that encouraged him to fight. He drifted away from Yugi. His body became drowsy, too exhausted to do much. He let the forced sleep carry him away, with a final thought in mind:

My name is Yugi Muto, but who am I?


	2. June Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the start of the adventure, and the start of everything going worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Amazing cover art by my best friend, Mya! Also known as titties-moist.tumblr.com

Yugi felt a cool breeze gently brush against his face. It took him a few moments to register he was no longer in the dark, and his eyes were simply closed. When they flickered open, he was greeted by the bright light of the warm sun, a sun he had taken a seemingly sudden dislike to. After a moment of having his eyes opened, he felt a dull throbbing in his head, which seemed to worsen as he regained consciousness. Whether it was the sun inducing this head pain, or an extraneous variable, remained unclear to him.

Yugi was certain he had not fallen asleep. He didn't feel the simple grogginess, or his body slowly awakening, or the will to roll over and mutter 'just five more minutes'. Instead, he felt nothing but pain, like he had been knocked to the floor or had even tripped. His muscles protested against movement, too sore to even think about budging. Even his eyes started to hurt from keeping them open. And this heat was not helping.

He couldn't remember where he was, what he was doing, or where he was going. Yugi barely knew who he was. He knew his name, and...his last name? Were they his only two remaining memories? He attempted to search the crevices for his mind for something, anything he could remember. It hurt to think, the throbbing picking up the pace if he tried harder. It hurt to do a lot of things, but he knew, in the back of his mind, he had to do something important. It wasn't safe around here, and he had a job to do. He just didn’t know what it was anymore.

As his eyes began to shut again, he felt a soft hand on his shoulder and a voice. It was feminine, he could tell that much. It sounded oddly familiar, as well. Yugi thought he could hear his name, but could not fully recognise it. His head, his body, his mind...his entire being weighed down flat on the hard, unforgiving soil. All he could muster was a low groan as he tightened his eyes shut, blocking out more of the irritating sun. Yugi felt a pair of arms, thin, yet somehow strong, lift him up, and he let himself lay limp and still, thinking it may help. The last thing he thought of before drifting back out of consciousness was the smell of cherries, most likely a perfume on the neck of his saviour.

When he regained consciousness, he did not feel fresh air brushing past his skin, nor the earth beneath him as he had last time he awoke. He felt the softness of a bed beneath his weary body, and sheets gently laid on him, as if he was a child who had fallen asleep in an odd place. Yugi sat up and opened his eyes, blinking a few times to allow his eyes to adjust. This was no longer the sunny field he woke up in what felt like moments before. It was a darker home. He didn't mind the darkness; he welcomed it after the field and the sun, which Yugi swore had burnt into his retinas. A fire crackled in the fireplace opposite the bed. Its yellow flames touched the top of the fireplace's cavity and darkened the stone, the red and brown and orange highlights caught his eye. The wood crackled and was alight with flecks of embers around the edges of the now-charcoaled wood. Its warmth radiated around the room, and he could feel the gentle heat against his face just as he had before.

With a still-heavy body, he sat up in the bed and let the covers drop from his body. He did not recognise this place at all. The walls were seemingly made of mainly wood, or the wood was at least a decoration against stone. On the wall facing him, what he thought was a painting hung. It was only a window, and he noticed he must have passed out for a while; the sky was now black, with tiny dots of yellowish light dotted in the background and white stars accentuating the sky, with the crescent moon joining them.

The door creaked open, causing Yugi to flinch and jump, ready to jump out of the bed at any moment. He shuffled backwards as he jumped, but his back only hit a wall. Realising he had nowhere to hide, all he could do was sit there, stunned, a child caught doing something he knew he should not have. A white-haired person stepped inside the room, but stopped when they noticed Yugi was awake. Instead of appearing worried, however, he broke into a soft smile.

Yugi had no idea what to feel. Who was this person? Was he the person who saved Yugi from wherever he was? There was something inside his heart that told him no; it wasn't the same person. He had no other choice than to heavily rely on gut instinct. After all, what else could he trust? His own mind was deceptive, and his own thoughts were murky. All he could do until he could trust his memories not to fail him was to trust his heart.

"Yugi?" he asked, almost hesitant to even ask for his name. Despite a lack of knowledge, Yugi could guess something was wrong. Perhaps he wasn't sure whether he would be known, or maybe he always seemed so shy. He doubted it was the latter.  
Nevertheless, it bothered him; how did this stranger know his name? "...yes?" His eyes were locked onto the stranger, subconsciously watching, waiting for some cue that he would be a threat. But his mannerisms did not signify enemy; they signified a good friend. And all Yugi could do when it came to these new people was trust based on mannerisms.  
"You don't know who I am, do you?" Yugi shook his head. The stranger frowned a little bit, concerned. "I'm Ryou Bakura. But, I have a feeling you don't remember a lot of other things, do you?"  
He shook his head. "No. I don't remember anything. Can you tell me?" Ryou bit his bottom lip, trying to think of a way to explain, or at least try to detract from the topic.  
In the end, he must have guessed that telling the truth was a much better idea. "It's...well, it's a long story. And it's not really my place to tell you, either. You'll have to figure out your memories on your own, I'm afraid," he replied, still frowning a little.  
"Oh, alright," he sighed, but allowed himself to relax a little more around Ryou. "But, where are we?"  
"This place?" Ryou asked, "Unless you mean my inn, this town is Premiantis. It's just a small town; there isn't much to say about it, really. But this is my home, so I can't really complain."  
"Small things aren't always bad," Yugi smiled at him.  
"I'm just happy you're okay. Would you like something to eat, or drink?" he asked. Yugi shook his head again.  
"No, it's okay. I don't wanna be a bother," he laughed awkwardly, his hands playing with the edges of the bed sheet.  
"Don't be silly, Yugi. You're always welcome in my home," Ryou reassured him. "Oh! Hold on. There was something I needed to give to you."

Ryou gently opened the door, closing it quietly behind him as he left the room. In all honesty, Yugi felt relieved; he had been rescued by a mysterious stranger as far as he was concerned, and he had been looked after by caring people, who appeared to be his friend. Whether they were really friends or not was something he could not remember, nor would he try to. He counted himself lucky; he could just as easily have been taken in by a darker crowd, or just killed where he was. That was a terrifying thought, Yugi had to admit. With a stretch, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed. His legs extended out over the edge for a few moments, before letting them flop back down once more.

After a few moments, he heard someone knock three times on the door as a warning, before opening it up again once more. It was only Ryou which, although was not surprising, still startled Yugi a little bit. Folded up neatly on Ryou's left arm seemed to be, upon first glance, a wad of dark sheets. But, as he fully entered the room, Yugi realised they were, in fact, items of clothing. Atop the pile of clothing sat a pair of rather comfortable-looking black leather shoes which had been placed carefully to not fall as Ryou walked.

"You'll need these," Ryou informed him, placing them on the bottom of the bed. "They're new, and I think they belong to you, anyway. You'll need them to fit in with this place."  
"Thank you! Your help means a lot to me," Yugi smiled up at him as he stood up from his post on the bed.  
"As I've said, it's not a problem. I'm always here if you need me," Ryou returned the smile, before turning away from Yugi.

Without another word, Ryou left the room, shutting the door behind him as he had earlier. Yugi looked down the outfit he was wearing. It was much unlike the outfit given to him from what he could tell, and yet it held a familiarity to him. The darkish blue jacket, left undone to reveal a black shirt, the darkish blue trousers, which matched the jacket. Was this a uniform? It appeared to be one, due to its lack of vibrancy, or a lack of interesting designs. And something about it reminded him of boredom and hours wasted in a certain place that he would probably never remember.

Ignoring his current outfit, Yugi cast his attention to the clothes Ryou had placed on the bed. It seemed to be a whole outfit, and all the same colour - black. Admittedly, he wasn't too fond of the colour black, but there was no need for objections. After all, he was grateful he could even get clothes that may fit in with his new atmosphere and new place. The last thing he wanted was to cause attention in a town he assumed he was just a guest in.

Yugi put the shoes aside carefully grabbed the top of the pile, which was apparently folded and separated out for him. He unfolded the first item, which appeared to be a tunic, seeing as it was not fitting enough to be a dress. The second item was a pair of rather tight-looking trousers, which struck him as odd, but shrugged it off regardless. The third item was what seemed to be a cloak, which completed the outfit.

He shed his old clothes and laid them carefully on the other end of the bed, taking them away from his new clothes, which he wasn’t even sure if they were fully his. He took his time to dress and adjust to the new clothing. As he put on the tunic, he found that a belt sat in belt loops on the waist of it, unfastened. This outfit was becoming more girlish by the minute, and he wasn't sure that he liked it. The trousers were fine; they were much looser than first anticipated. However, he did enjoy the cloak. The sleeves were long, and hung loose at the bottom of the sleeves. The back of it, which nearly reached the ground, swished with each step, which kind of amused him. The hood managed to conceal and flatten out his impossible hair, which he had found amazing. Afterwards, he slipped on the shoes, which felt nicer than he had already anticipated and hugged his feet in a soft embrace.

In his excitement, Yugi didn't notice a scroll at the bottom of the pile of clothing. Although small, it was still noticeable against the bed sheets. He picked it up hesitantly. Maybe it was a message to someone else. It would be rude to open it. But something inside of him told him to do it, it was somehow important and he had to uncover its secrets. He unrolled the piece of parchment. There was bright writing on the scroll, which seemed to glow like ember on coal. The writing itself was small and illegible to most likely most people, but somehow, Yugi could read it. The letters made sense to him, despite not understanding what the language even was. Perhaps it was the written language of this land, or it was something else that he did not know. Not that he knew a lot in this place.

It was, from what he could gather, instructions. Instructions for some kind of basic fire spell. It didn't appear too complicated. Perhaps Ryou put it there for him to use, or it was simply a happy accident. With a shrug, he placed the scroll back on the bed, which curled back up nearly instantly, which seemed to be a protective mechanism. He could at least give the spell a shot. Maybe if Yugi could read it, he would have the ability to cast it.

He remembered the instructions quite clearly. He cupped his hands, one on top of the other, forming the shape of a ball and leaving enough space to hold an imaginary ball. He closed his eyes, focused solely on the empty space in his hands; the size, the volume, and the circumference of the circle. As he took in a deep breath, he felt a surge of power flow deep within the veins in his arms, which had felt like crackling of sparks inside them, and empty out in the air-filled sphere his hands had created. Yugi felt an odd warmth beginning to gather in the centre of his hands, but did not break his focus, his eyes still shut. There came a point where no more was able to fill his hands, and that was the point he opened his eyes to examine his work.

There in his hands, which once contained nothing but air, burned a ball of reddish, orange fire. Nothing was aiding this burning, and it did not have anything fuelling it. Yugi almost lost his focus, startled, before realising the ball was not hurting him. It was not touching his hands or any part of his flesh, it appeared repelled by it. He stood there, staring at the fiery ball which he had formed. Had he really done that? It didn't seem possible; he was no mage, yet there he was, a spell cast and ready to be thrown. And that was when he realised - where was he going to put it?

Yugi's concentration slipped as he looked around for a place to put it, and his hands momentarily moved out of position. His gaze flickered over just as the ball fell in slow motion, his entire body no longer able to function, or even attempt to catch it again. The ball fell onto the wooden flooring, setting it alight instantly. In a panic, Yugi tried to stomp on it, to suffocate the flames, anything, but the fire only grew and spread throughout the flooring. The heat made him dizzy, and the smoke filled his lungs. He had to get out of there.

Yugi grabbed the scroll and swung open the door, thundering downstairs to try and find Ryou. What he found was something he had not expected. There were more flames lapping up the wall, engulfing it in charcoal black. No one was left in the building. This could not have been him. Could it? The flames were too big to be him, and had spread too far. It was not as recent as his accident. He covered his face with the sleeve of his cloak to try and save his lungs as he dashed out of the burning inn.

Outside, Yugi watched other buildings burn around them. It wasn't his fault; it was terrible timing on his part. Regardless, he was faced with confused townsfolk and angry stares at him, as if it was his fault. It looked like his suspicions had been falsely confirmed. He bowed his head in shame, feeling the guilt that was not meant to be his own. A gentle hand grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it softly. He looked to his side, and found Ryou standing beside him. He smiled reassuringly at Yugi.

A scream alerted the small crowd and Yugi, shaking them from their focus on the inn. A guard, clad in copper armour, ran up to the group by the inn. His breathing was shallow and quick. He slumped to his knees by the outskirts of the group, chest heaving for breath. It was then that Yugi noticed that his armour wasn't copper-coloured; it had been covered in blood. Something had stabbed through the man's armour.

"Her Majesty, the princess," he choked out, struggling with even the simplest of words. "She's gone."

The crowd went silent. Not even a whisper or a mutter came from the group, it wasn't needed. They all had a similar mindset; and that was to act fast. The group dissipated, moving swiftly and spread along the town with one objective – find the princess, safe and unharmed. Even Ryou had left Yugi to go and find her. He found himself alone in a strange town he had no idea how to navigate. This night was going swimmingly.

Yugi found himself aimlessly wandering around the town, hunting for a princess he did not know. In fact, what did she even look like? He didn't even know what kind of clothes this mysterious girl wore. At least it could take the blame off of him for a while. Not that it was his fault to begin with; people were just hell bent on believing this.

In his mindless wandering, Yugi realised he was in the centre of town, or at least, where he assumed the centre was. Beside him stood a large, running fountain, with the shape of what were most likely three people in the middle as statues. A few feet away stood a large, white, old-looking building. The white stone had begun to crack; most likely from years of being around. The ground floor had arched entrances, hiding anyone who may have stepped under them.

And at that point, as if right on cue, someone stepped out from the shadows. The first thing Yugi noticed was the smirk, which managed to gleam in what little fire light was around them. His hair, long and white, had been tucked away neatly in the clasp of a deep purple bow, which matched his shirt. Over his shoulders, a similarly-coloured cape was draped, trimmed with the fur of a small, snowy animal, one which had a black-tipped tail when alive. Brown trousers tucked into black boots shielded his legs, and on his fingers were far too many jewels to even begin counting. The first and only thing Yugi could think of - what a walking fashion disaster.

"I'm so sorry that this place isn't what you expected," he began, the smirk audible in his speech. "But it's better than a straight ticket to the shadow realm, isn't it?"  
"Who are you?" Yugi asked him.  
"I didn't think you were one for clichéd lines, Yugi, but, alright, seeing as you asked so politely. Just call me Bakura, and I'm one of the two kings of this world. Not to be confused with that other nightmare, Ryou."  
"Wait, you're behind all of this, aren't you?" This was a wild shot in the dark. This Bakura could have easily just been at the wrong place and time. The never-diminishing smirk said otherwise.  
"Well done. I knew you were smart." Yugi did not respond, and only stared up at him. He took it as a cue to continue, and gestured in the general area of the town. "This entire world is of my own construction. And with some help from your memories and some alterations, of course. But sadly, that came at the cost of losing your memories."  
"Wait, so you-"  
"That's right. Blame me all you like, Yugi. But that won't change a thing."  
"I don't understand. What's the point?" he asked. Bakura shook his head before replying.  
"And more clichés, I see. I'm disappointed. You'll know soon enough, providing you survive. But, for now, I can see you've got people to answer to," Bakura replied.

Yugi turned around, assuming someone was behind him. He assumed falsely. When he turned back to face Bakura, he had disappeared. Honestly, he expected no different from him. Instead of lingering, he decided it was best to return to the inn. At least then there would be some sanity and comfort, and maybe Ryou would be around. There was a chance he would know about this Bakura. He turned away, and pulled up the hood of his cloak over his head, which somehow flattened the spiked nature of his odd, tri-coloured hairstyle. As he walked, he had become engrossed in his own thoughts. He did not hear footsteps sneak behind him. He did not hear the hushed whispers. He did not hear a sword being brandished only a few inches away.

In an instant, he had felt cold, sharp steel pressed against his throat, an attack from behind. The sword had cut him out of his thoughts, and tugged him back to reality. He froze completely, afraid to even breathe too heavily. He needed to gulp, but if he had, the blade would have most likely cut him. He tried to remain calm, but his entire body shook. It took all the effort he had to not scream, to not move even by a millimetre. His mind became numb, whatever thoughts he may have had in that moment vanquished. In that moment, his senses shut down in order to cope.

"Where's the princess?" the voice behind him, his attacker, asked. If Yugi did not fear for his life before, at the very least, he was fearing for his then. He managed to gulp down a tiny bit of his nerves.  
"I don't know," he replied, his voice wavering as he struggled to keep his cool. He didn't know anything; not about the princess, or about where she was, or even who she was.  
"That ain't an answer." The blade pressed harder into his throat, but still not enough to cut.  
"Look, maybe he doesn't know," another voice said. "You know as well as I do that they didn't just have black ones. Quit discriminating."  
"It was mainly black, and there ain't any black mages that live here. I'm not taking any chances," his attacker replied.

Yugi was ready to accept his demise. Of course, it wasn't what he wanted. He had questions to answer. But this man was not going to let up. He was expecting an answer from Yugi, yet he had no answers to give. His eyes closed once more, and he relaxed. Maybe that would make it much less painful. He still shook as he stood, but he was ready.

"Hold on!"

The voice was familiar, and he was certain he knew it. Yugi opened one of his eyes slightly. He was greeted by the sight of a snow-haired young man dashing towards him. With a blink, he opened both of his eyes, and let the relief wash over him. It was Ryou; he had come to help him. The sword did not move, however. Regardless, he was still glad to see a friendly face.

"Please, leave him alone. It wasn't him. He was one of the people at my inn, he couldn't have kidnapped her," Ryou pleaded with his attacker. There was a pause, and none of them spoke. Finally, the sword was swiftly taken away from his neck, and placed back in its sheath.

Yugi had never felt so glad to be alive. His fingers traced along his neck, not catching any blood that could have stuck to his fingers, or any cuts that would have stung with a touch. He turned on his heels to face his attacker and companion. Their armours matched. Perhaps they were hired mercenaries to help protect and serve the town. However, they both looked different. His attacker's hair was blonde and had been windswept from the action he must have gone through, whereas his companion had brown hair, which protruded a little in front of him. Yugi would call it odd, but after the events of today, they were most likely two of the most normal-looking people, despite the pair of them looming over his tiny frame.

"I'm Jonouchi," the blonde gestured to his companion. "And that's Honda."  
Yugi smiled at the pair. "My name is Yugi Muto; it's nice to meet you."  
"Where are you from?" Jonouchi asked. He felt a lump rise in his throat. There was no way he could lie his way out of that one.  
"Nerudge," Ryou answered for him. "He's not from this kingdom. He's an old friend of mine, and he was just passing through." He was Yugi's guardian angel, and he would owe Ryou. Jonouchi seemed to readily accept this alibi.  
"I've been there before, actually. Too rich for me, though," Honda replied.  
"Sorry to be a bother, Yug," Jonouchi apologised. "Dammit. Looks like we're gonna have to go through with Plan P."  
"Plan P?" He felt rude asking, but he was curious.  
"Plan Pilgrimage. It's used when an important person's gone missing'," he answered.  
"Can I join you guys?" Crap. It just slipped out. He had to go along with it. "I mean, just until I get back home. I-I've been meaning to travel the world, and it's good to have company, right?"  
Jonouchi smiled at him. "Sure. We could always do with a magic boost. What do you say, Honda?"  
His eyes flickered between Yugi and Jonouchi, letting out a soft hum as he thought. "Hey well, if my bud's cool with you, then so am I."  
"We'll be off tomorrow," Jonouchi said. "Meet us here, yeah?"  
"Right!" Yugi nodded. "See you guys tomorrow."

The quartet divided into two groups, and split off their separate ways. Yugi followed Ryou back to the inn. He honestly didn't mean to offer joining their 'Plan P', but it was something he felt compelled to say he wanted to. Why were they so eager to let him into the group? Jonouchi clearly wasn't too sure about him at the very least, and he knew he didn't trust Yugi, unless they still suspected him. Did they expect to be led to the princess by him? Because Yugi could do no such thing.

At least, when they had returned to the inn, it had not been too burnt down. The beds were still usable, and some of the rooms were fine. However, due to health reasons, the beds from the burnt rooms were out of action and unusable. Much to Ryou's happiness, for once, not too many people were staying at the inn, and there were enough rooms to go around. Yugi had one of the smaller rooms, but he didn't mind too much. It was better than having to share, at least. And he still felt partially responsible for the fire.

As he lay in the bed, it dawned on him; he wasn't tired. In fact, he was wide awake, despite the commotion. He felt like he could still do so much. And he knew there was so much to do, as well. A world of opportunity was open for him, and he was somehow wasting his time by sleeping, or, at the very least, attempting to sleep. However, he could not sleep. He watched the inky sky from his window shift from its colour to lighter shades of blue, mingled in with some orange. He watched as the sun rose from the horizon and the stars began to disappear. He still felt just as awake. And that was when he realised something was wrong with him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oops this took a while. Sorry guys! Also, um. Did I mention this was going to be a huge crossover with different fandoms and shows? No? Then you guys are in for a treat! And I'm sorry that my characterisation might be off. But I'm really trying, you guys.

The snores in other rooms began to die down and eventually stop as people began to wake up, the snores replaced by heavy footsteps and voices that carried on along the rooms and the corridor. They were lucky to have actually been able to drift off to a somewhat peaceful sleep. Yugi sat back up in his bed with no real protest from his body; in fact, it only welcomed the action. He was finally doing something. With a sigh, he got up and out of the room which, unlike his first one, was on the ground floor, making it much easier to leave without bumping into people awkwardly. Not too far away from his room was the front desk, where Ryou had already taken post for the day. The morning crowd must have woken him up.

"Oh, good morning, Yugi," he greeted with a smile. "How did you sleep?"  
"I don't think I managed to get any," Yugi said.  
"No, I didn't think you would," he sighed, leaning against the counter. "But then again, that's the issue with your class, isn't it?"  
"My class?" he cocked his head to the side a little.  
Ryou nodded. "Everyone in the world we live in has a class. Whether they master it or not is their choice. Not everyone wants to be, say, a priest, or a lumberjack! But that one isn't really a class. Each class has unique abilities, rules, strengths and weaknesses."  
"Then, what's mine?" He felt like a small child with all of the questions, but Ryou did not seem to mind this at all. In fact, it was almost refreshing to be the one able to answer questions, or so it seemed. Either that, or Ryou just loved curious people.  
"Well, you use black magic, so you're a black magic-user. Or a black mage, to be precise," he said thoughtfully. "You don't look like the warlock type, or the wizard type."  
"So that's what Jonouchi and Honda were talking about," Yugi interrupted before he could elaborate. Ryou nodded.  
"Maybe I gave you the outfit a little too soon. But I never expected this much commotion. I'm sorry. If I knew this was going to happen, I would have waited until today. It wasn't very fair on you."  
"You keep apologising, but really, I'm okay," Yugi pointed out. Ryou only gave him a sheepish smile.  
"Well, it's true. I can't help but feel a little bit responsible for what could've happened. Anyway, back to your class. As a black mage, you have control over the twelve black elements," he said as he pulled out a book from under his desk. The cover seemed to be aged, but barely opened, as evidenced by its spine.. Perhaps he had no real need for it. Was he a master of remembering the classes? That would have been amazing. He opened it up, and showed Yugi one of the pages. On it featured what he assumed to be the stereotypical black magic-user; fitted with dark features, and around him swirled a purple aura, with the symbols of twelve different elements dotted around the edges in a circular shape. They seemed to be fire, wind, metal, ice, time, shadow, water, thunder, earth, body, mind and light. The opposite page was similar. However the magic-user was clad in white robes, with a golden aura around them. Just as their dark counterpart, they also had elemental symbols; cloud, healing, emotions, status boosts, life, light, space, plant, animal communion, status ailments, death and shadow. The only reason he knew that was because it was written underneath the picture. "But, as you can see, one of those elements is also used in white magic," he explained as he pointed. "The white and black users traditionally oppose each other because of religion or cultural differences, which is why it's not often you see a white and black mage in a party, or even anywhere near each other. But, if they're together for long enough, well, I guess you can call it a reward. A white mage can learn shadow magic, and a black mage can learn light magic. But it won't be as powerful as if the correct user masters it."  
"That's pretty weird," Yugi replied, reading the pages and trying to remember all that he could about his class, and his 'opposing' class. "But thanks! I'll remember that."  
He closed the book, and slid it over to Yugi. "You should take it. It's gathering dust in my desk."  
"It's not mine to take," he pushed it back to him.  
"I insist! Really, I won't need it anymore," he slid it back over to Yugi.  
"Thanks, Ryou," he smiled.

The young mage took the book in his hands, which weighed a considerable amount to him. Then again, it was quite thick, spanning at what seemed to be over a thousand pages. On the cover, in golden writing, the words 'A Child's Guide to the World' had been etched on. Yugi had a lot to catch up on in this world he resided in. He had the knowledge of a child, it seemed. Which was quite depressing, considering he was nearing the age of an adult, even if he didn't appear to be. The book began to lighten on his palms, and he watched it shrink into a more manageable, pocket size. It was obviously enchanted, due to its target audience.

"I'm sure you'll find it useful," Ryou assured him.  
"I think I will. Thanks," Yugi nodded, placing the now-tiny book in a pocket of his robe. "I should probably get going. The other two are probably waiting."  
"I'll see you again soon, I hope!" the innkeeper replied, waving at Yugi as he left the inn.

Yugi squinted as the bright, summer sun beat down on him, and burnt into his retinas once more. He used his hand to try and shield his eyes from the harsh Sun. The heat enveloped him in a tight, suffocating squeeze as the heat did its job of concentrating on the darkness of Yugi's robes. Summer months were a pain with dark robes, and the young mage had just begun realising just how terrible they were. He raised the hood over his head as he walked, stealing glances around the town. There wasn't as much fire damage as Yugi thought there would be, but there was still a significant amount. The guilt had slowly lifted from his shoulders; he was certain it wasn't him. He was sure it was the mysterious Bakura, who had introduced himself as a king. They were sure to cross paths again.

Thankfully, there was a use for the burning sun, which was causing him to perspire a little more than he was comfortable to admit. It allowed Yugi to know exactly where he was going, without getting lost, unlike the previous night, where he was clueless. Plus, he had found his way there before the previous day. It couldn't have been too challenging. It wasn't as far as he thought it was, either. When he looked up, he could see the fountain, the statues in the centre, and the building, where he had met Bakura for the first time, and certainly not the last. However, he saw Jonouchi's looming figure close to the fountain, waiting. He caught Yugi's eye, and gave him a grin.

His armour wasn't the same as yesterday. His armour has been replaced with something much lighter, due to the demand of having to move, become agile and be swift enough to take on an ambush, which came with the job of adventure. He wore a black undershirt, with what seemed to be the outline of chainmail underneath a slightly dark brown tunic. Leather gloves protected his hands, and would prevent him from hurting himself from holding his sword too long. A dark brown belt separated the top half from the similarly-coloured bottom half, where the bottom had been tucked neatly into his leather boots. His sword, too large for any sheath without it grazing against ground, was strapped to his back. But he took it in stride, and stood up normally with it on.

"C'mon, Yugi, we've gotta get going," Jonouchi called.  
"Yeah, sorry," he smiled nervously, approaching him. "Wait, where's Honda?"  
"He's saying goodbye to a 'ladyfriend'," he gave a snort at the thought as he made air quotations, an in-joke Yugi wasn't part of.  
"Will he be back soon?" Yugi asked.  
"Eh, maybe. He'll only be gone another hour," he joked.

A good few feet away, a couple stood together, holding both of each other's hands. After a bit of squinting, the male was easily identified as Honda, due to his impossibly-forward hairstyle. The woman in question donned white robes, with a hint of cream to them. Her head hung low, and her long, blue hair had covered the sides of her face. Carefully, with but the tips of his fingers, he brushed away her hair behind her ear, before pulling her in a tight embrace. His gaze cast off to the side, before catching his other two party members watching him. The couple broke off the embrace, with Honda planting a soft kiss on her forehead, before making his way over to the snooping pair.

"Ready to go yet?" Jonouchi asked. "Or are we gonna have to try and hold the contents of our stomachs for another hour?"  
"You're really unromantic," Honda replied, rolling his eyes.  
"Love's romantic, yeah. But I don't think a proposal right before you go is," Jonouchi replied. "Don't deny it, I saw it!"  
"Can we just go, guys? Arguing won't help anything."  
"Yugi's right. C'mon, Honda, before you change your mind," the blond told him, starting off the walk to the town gates.

Yugi followed the two travelling guards to the town gates. Honda's outfit was similar to Jonouchi's but, as he walked, it seemed a little more rigid. His clothes were longer-sleeved, with the usage of tougher material, which had instead of being dyed brown, was a dark green colour. Unlike Jonouchi and his sword, Honda carried his axe, and slung it over his right shoulder as he walked. His tunic had padded shoulders, which made the axe a bit less wearing on him, as well as less tedious to carry and less prone to injury.

"Hey, who was that girl, anyway?" Yugi asked.  
"Miho Nosaka, the town's priestess, devoted to Ra, and all that stuff. Meaning she's bein' a little sneaky with Honda over here," Jonouchi gestured to the man on his right.  
"We haven't kissed, so it's fine! You just don't get love," Honda replied.

The pair grew deathly quiet. Romance would be a subject that Yugi would remember to never bring back up, or at least not with that pair. Was it touchy? It probably brought back bad memories or something. They didn't know each other too well, so prying would be a terrible idea. Besides, with those weapons, they could easily pulverise the young mage. Whilst Yugi's ability extended to setting inns on fire and getting himself hated by a town, which was not a good ability to have. Really, he needed new spells. Spells that he could have found in town, in some shops, if they had any. Oh, God dammit. Or was it Ra dammit? Silly little technicalities. This world would be a pain to get accustomed to.

Once they had reached the gates, the large metal doors had been opened for them. And, once the doors had opened, it had revealed the outside world, a place not often visited by residents of Premiantis, for their own safety. So, of course, Jonouchi and Honda reacted like children during the Summer Solstice festivals. They had run out of the gates, leaving Yugi behind, confused, but eventually decided to follow them.

What was laid out before them was what the two warriors liked to think of as 'freedom'. To Yugi, and anyone not from Premiantis, it was a simple large field of grass, which was stretched all around in front. In the background, what seemed to be a small forest was dotted, the dark green leaves contrasting against the lighter green grass. It would take a while to travel to there, judging from the distance alone. But it was plausible to get there in a rather short amount of time.

"Who's ready to go find missing royalty?" Jonouchi grinned mischievously at the other two.  
"As ready as ever," Honda replied, though not as enthusiastic as his friend.

They journeyed for a while without rest through the field, where the temperature slowly began to suffocate the new heroes. It slowed them down as they realised they were not as prepared for this as they had thought, or really assumed, as would be the accurate word to use. They had silently agreed to head for the forest; it would provide some protection against the weather, be it rain or sun. Plus, the leaves would provide some sort of shade from the sweltering heat, which had made their bodies drench themselves with sweat and their lungs fill with what might as well have been cotton.

Their steps were sluggish, each was a valiant effort. They just had to keep pushing themselves. The forest wasn't too far, they told themselves. Yet, with every step, it seemed to retract another mile. It was becoming ridiculous. They were strong men, who could lug themselves to some forest with no effort. Well, except for Yugi, but he was making a damn good effort by not dragging the team down with him.

It felt like hours until they reached the entrance to the forest. The inside contrasted quite shockingly with the outside world around it. Shadows loomed inside, and threatened to devour any soul brave and stupid enough to enter inside its leafy prison. Yugi was about to turn back; he wasn't a coward, but he knew when the time was to let something go, cut his losses and turn away from danger.

He only wished Jonouchi and Honda were that careful. Or maybe, he wasn't as blindingly brave as they appeared to be. Yugi wasn't sure, but he didn't think he wanted to find out.

"Is this really a good idea?" Yugi asked as he followed the pair inside the forest.  
"No, but it's better to be sure, right?" Honda replied. His hand gripped tighter onto the axe that he had slung over his right shoulder, his muscles tensing up with possible fear or adrenaline, but ready.  
"Isn't it better to be safe than sorry?" he retorted, pulling down his hood. Jonouchi took this as an invite to ruffle his unnatural hair.  
"Are you scared?"  
"What? No! I don't like the look of this place," he said with a slight shudder.  
"It'll be fine. C'mon, we've gotta move as much as we can before nightfall," the blonde replied, once more walking in front of everyone else, if only by just a couple of inches. He liked to take on the leader role, Yugi noted. He didn't mind, he wasn't much of a leader, personally.

Even through the tall trees, only small, sparse flecks of sunlight managed to pierce through the thick shielding of leaves and branches above their heads. The trio needed to squint to see what was around them, careful not to bump into another party member, or a tree.

Instead of making this an awkward situation for everyone involved, Yugi put his hands together, again letting enough space in between for a ball of fire to form in between. Despite it feeling easier and more natural, it still took a considerable amount of power to be able to do it. He was careful with the ball not to set anything on fire, especially as they were in a forest. However, at least they could see. That was the only thing keeping the other two from objecting.

Even with a light source, there was still something that seemed to loom over him, snarling at him, teeth bared at him. It was just a silly thought, he assured himself. Even so, Yugi could almost feel it. In his mind, he could sense its breathing on the back of his neck as it sniffed its tiny prey, wondering whether this tiny snack would be worth the effort. It would drool as it eyes up its potential meal, realising it would be worth the effort. Yes, he was mostly bones, but it would have been the flavour that attracted it. Its long, sharp teeth would slowly open as thick blobs of saliva ran down the corner of its dark mouth, anticipating the first chew, the first scream and plea and cry for help that would never save him. This thought had begun to unnerve the young mage. He could no longer walk and pretend that this was not a thought that sent too many shivers down his now-frozen spine. He took a glance behind him, and he swore he caught the gleam of white, long, sharp fangs. He took another look.

His imagination was correct.

Behind him, a large, four-legged beast stood, ready to pounce. Its black fur blended in perfectly with the shadow around it. Its yellow eyes glowed in the light of Yugi's fire, igniting them with not only emotion, but bloodthirst as well. Its mouth hung open, about to grab him in its strong-looking jaw, before realising its prey had noticed. It hissed at him, recoiling a bit, but only for an instant. Most of its weight shifted to its back legs, steadying itself before making the pounce. All Yugi had time for was to let out a short yell to his party to actually notice trouble was afoot. The pair turned just in time to notice the creature, before it had the chance to attack, or even harm Yugi.

Jonouchi, without a moment's hesitation, gripped onto the handle of his sword, unsheathing it and as careful as ever not to cut his head, or the back of his neck in the process. With both hands, he slashed at the beast, which although did not harm it, it backed away from Yugi with a backwards leap. But it was prepared, always prepared, as it dashed for him again, its feet thundering across the ground as its mouth hung open. Yugi looked down at the ball in his hands, realising what he could do. Like a regular ball, he tossed it at the charging beast and, by some miracle, he hadn't missed. A patch of its black fur was alight with flames, causing it to scream from the burning pain that was spreading fast along his fur, the scorched fur only adding to the pain. With a sharp, heavy swing of his axe, Honda lodged the heavy, sharp end into the beast's skull. A sickening crack as the metal entered, but it was not enough to fully slay the beast. As it stumbled, confused and now trying to escape, Jonouchi took the opportunity to stab his sword inside of the creature's chest, essentially piercing through its heart. It let out an eardrum-shattering scream.

The beast's legs began to give way as its knees became weak. It flopped against the ground heavily, chest heaving as blood barely visibly poured out of its chest. Its bright, piercing yellow eyes closed as it let out one, final shaky breath, accompanied by a pathetic whine. The pair removed their weapons from the beast. They both cleaned their weapons, the bright red blood instead staining the dark green grass and mud on the forest floor.

"You okay, Yugi?" Jonouchi asked, putting his sword back in its usual, rightful place.  
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks, guys. I'm really sorry that I'm being kind of a bother right now," Yugi apologised.  
"No worries. We're a team, that's what team mates do," he said, before continuing to walk once more.

The trio treaded more carefully. They became aware. They were not alone in the forest. They should have guessed as much. But it seemed the place was much darker than they had anticipated. But, at least, it was not filled to the brim with creatures like that. They were silent, ears tuned to the sound of snapped twigs, rustling leaves or low growls. Yugi lit another ball of fire in between the palm of his hands which, as the previous one, acted as more of a light source rather than combat preparation. The latter was just a handy little bonus.

Even though the light from above was already very dim, it was still enough to see that nightfall would be coming shortly, as the sparse enough light was beginning to fade from the sky. They decided to set up a small camp in an area not too crowded with trees, with enough space for three people to sleep around a fire. Honda was placed upon wood-gathering duty, whilst Yugi perused the area for any kind of edible-looking fruits or wildlife. As Jonouchi offered, he could easily kill and cook right then and there, the moment Yugi found it. Whilst the other two were busy doing work, Jonouchi was back at the camp, simply waiting for their return with supplies.

When Honda and Yugi returned, Jonouchi was laying on his back, so close to being fully asleep and completely relaxed. He was also completely unsuspecting, as his best friend realised the moment he spotted his close-enough-to-asleep friend, which was perfect.

On the very edge of his toes, Honda treaded carefully, not snapping a single twig or crunching a single leaf in his path. Jonouchi was drifting off more and more by the second. It was obvious by his breathing, which was gradually getting heavier and more relaxed. With an arm full of twigs and small logs, he stood by the dozing swordsman's side. His arms let the wood drop down onto him, particularly aiming for the stomach area. Jonouchi let out a sharp gasp, not from pain, but more from the shock of the things dropped on him, dragging him from his soft dreams of not being in a forest and back into the hard reality that he was in a forest.

"What was that for?" Jonouchi asked, sitting up and throwing a log at the back of the laughing brunet's head.  
"For making us do all of the work!" he replied, starting to gather up the wood to build their fire.  
"Did you get enough?"  
"You're the one who felt how many logs there were," he replied, trying not to show his smugness to the still partially-asleep blonde.  
"Are we good on food?" he asked Yugi.  
"I could only find fruit. I hope you guys like fruit," he replied, showing the fruit he had contained in his robes.  
"Just fruit?"  
"You should've helped," Honda said, having gathered the wood pile into the middle of the poorly-make makeshift camp.

Yugi tossed a fire ball onto the pile of wood, setting it alight nearly instantly. The trio sat around the fire - even though it wasn't cold and it may have been a little too hot to sit around a fire, it was still nice. They each shared the assortment of food, but they were all silently daring each other to eat the more dangerous, bright red fruit when all the others had been eaten. It could have easily been poisonous. Neither of them really wanted to find out. The pressure was shifted onto Yugi. The other two stared at him, expectant, silently demanding and daring him to eat the dangerous fruit, not them.

Yugi picked up the red fruit. They were just small berries. But, they were also unidentifiable and strange. They were too soft in his fingers, with little to no form when he pressed on them with his thumb. But they did not burst. The skin was smooth and it felt fragile, but it was tougher than it seemed. He looked up from the fruit, and into two pairs of brown eyes had been staring at him, still as expectant as they had been just mere moments before. No words were needed. It looked like he was the designated food tester. It wasn't fair, come to think of it; he had gathered the fruit, Honda gathered the firewood, but Jonouchi only succeeded in napping for a little while.

He placed the all too soft fruit on his tongue, which he slid back into his mouth, and chewed slowly. The moment his teeth pierced the skin, the juice flooded into his mouth like an acidic wave. It stung his tongue, but the kick of sweetness laced within the juice helped to soothe the sudden sourness of the fruit. He continued to chew, his face thoughtful. It tasted rather pleasant, once the acidity wore off a little. He ate another one, and another, and soon they had all gone, with Yugi having a happy and satiated stomach, which gave a low, contented grumble.

But it all changed when he gripped onto his throat with all of his strength as if it would help solve something, his violet eyes wide open. He looked at the other two, and mouthed 'help'. His fingernails began to dig inside his throat, desperate, his chest no longer rising and falling in time with his breathing, or at all. His eyes closed as he flumped down onto his back with a hard thump. He did not move. He did not breathe still.

"Yugi? Are you okay?" Even though it was a silly question, it was all Jonouchi could think about saying that would be appropriate. He moved closer to the unconscious figure, nudging him and slapped his cheek enough to startle him into consciousness. Or, at least, what should have been enough.  
"Check his pulse!" Honda exclaimed.

Jonouchi followed the instruction. He took his index and middle finger and pressed them against the mage's neck, searching for the area where the pulse was, or where it could and should have been. They searched frantically for a pulse, for some sort of feeling of life emitting from him. There was nothing. Jonouchi was not ready to give up.

"Let's try the kiss of life."

He cupped Yugi's face in his hands, who was still lifeless and still did not react to his voice or his touching. He hesitantly brought his face closer to his, eyes screwed shut. He tried to imagine him as a pretty girl, which was easier than he thought it would have been. Their lips almost touched. He stopped. This was weird. But, he had to. Otherwise, Yugi might not live-

"I'm awake!" Yugi exclaimed, pushing his face away and shuffling from the blond male.  
"Don't scare me like that!" Jonouchi replied, rubbing the aching spots on his face where Yugi had pushed him away.  
"The berries didn't kill you?" Honda asked, to which Yugi shook his head.  
"No. I was only joking. They're fine to eat," he smiled at the pair, who looked uneasily at the bounty of red fruit.  
"I think I'll pass," Honda said.

It wasn't long before the two warriors became tired, due to the commotion caused by one sneaky magic-user who just wanted to ease some sort of negativity. He told them he wasn't tired, and after having to assure them that he would not try another prank, and that they would not wake up to him dead, the two had gone to sleep, leaving Yugi alone and awake.

The lack of need to sleep didn't bother him as much as the first time. He supposed this was permanent. But why was he not tired? Why could he not sleep? He was nearly certain it was only his who suffered, which was apparent from the way Honda and Jonouchi were happily asleep, snoring rather loudly and obnoxiously. There had to be a reason someone like him could not sleep. He wished he could have the luxury of sleep in his grasp as he had before. Unless he had not slept before. He didn't know. But he assumed that there was a time when he slept. There just had to have been.

At the very least, Yugi wasn't completely alone. He had the friendly creatures of the forest around him, as well as his sleeping friends. Or were they simply companions? He hoped it was the former; it wasn't nice travelling with people who felt neutral about him. He lied down against the harsh ground, a root digging into his back a little, but he didn't bother to move. It kept him alert, stopping him from getting too comfortable. He shouldn't have been thinking that way, but after earlier, he would rather not take chances in this forest.

He looked up at the sky, which was hard to distinguish through the dark leaves of the trees overhead. He watched the white stars, which gave him some sort of comfort, like a guiding light to reach. Even though he was alone, time seemed to speed by. The stars began to disappear and be engulfed by the light of the Sun, as it rose up into the sky, slowly providing the world with its light, albeit very minimal within the depths of the forest.

By the time Jonouchi and Honda had risen once more from their slumber, Yugi had the time to go and pick some more fruit and, included within the picked menu was more of the red berries that had 'poisoned' Yugi. It was partially for his own amusement, but mainly because they really were pretty nice. With enough encouragement, the other two managed to man up and eat the strange berries. Perhaps it was due to desperate hunger, or they had realised that the berries were harmless, and were just nice. Either way, it had satisfied them, which was more than enough.

It was time to set off through the forest once more. They abandoned their camp, where only a long-extinguished fire remained. Birds chirped their morning song happily, bouncing from tree to tree. Although it was beautiful, it was also rather frightening to the party. It could have been any sort of beast, from a large creature that could crush them with just a twitch, to a small one who would be harmless. But every noise was just another bird.

The rest of the journey was relatively peaceful. There were no more beasts trying to kill either of them. But, then again, they had become stealthier, which was probably why. The only times when the peace was disrupted was when Jonouchi and Honda argued over something trivial and stupid, which Yugi would have to mediate, before they murdered each other and potentially harmed any others in their pointless bickering.

It took a couple of days, but they were nearing the edge of the forest. They could almost smell the freedom, and see the light beginning to shine through around. There would no longer be so much humidity from being encased within a forest. It would all be smooth. However, nightfall had already arrived. It was best to set up camp where they were before venturing off into uncharted - to them, anyway - land.

The duties were shared as evenly as possible; Honda gathered the wood, Yugi gathered the food, and Jonouchi set up the firewood in a formation suitable enough for a campfire. The three of them had set up camp near a clean-looking river, which was convenient for them. They ate a quick dinner of berries and other fruits Yugi had found, which were getting kind of boring. They missed other foods, but there were none around the forest. None that didn't require a dangerous solo hunt.

Soon enough, Yugi found himself alone again, as confirmed by the other two's snores. 'There's gotta be something I can do,' he thought to himself. He looked around him. There wasn't much to do around him. If he had a sword, he could have practiced fighting. Then that would be a productive use of his sleepless nights. All he had was magic.

And, in that second, it had dawned on him; he could actually do something of use.

He stood up from the ground, and snuck away from the sleeping pair to a place just far enough to not disturb them, but enough to keep an eye on them, in case a creature or person snuck up on them. He kept glancing back at them, worried. Was this even a good idea? He could have done some serious damage! But, it was better than being completely useless, as he had been for the past few days. And he was determined not to become a burden on the adventure.

His hands cupped together, as they had done time and time again. The ball ignited faster than all of the other times. Yugi couldn't help but smile; he was finally getting somewhere with this magic thing. He was getting the hang of it. Slowly, but very surely, he was finally getting the hang of this one particular spell, at least.

When he was done making one ball, Yugi made a sort of target practice game to hit certain parts of the river, watching it fall and, with a hiss, disappear from existence. He silently cheered when he hit a certain area, but was only a little disappointed when he did not manage to hit the correct spot. He would get it next time, he was certain each time.

Yugi carried this on, even past sunrise, never letting himself take any real, long breaks. Sometimes, he would take longer to get a proper feel for the fire that he held within his hands before throwing it off into the lake. He carried on until his mana levels had completely drained from his body, and he had kneeled against the ground, worn out but proud of himself.

By the time he was done, the rest of his party had awoken.


End file.
